How the early Church Fathers see this connection between our Martha and our Mary, between the ‘ego’ and the ‘self’, our Divine spark, is best illustrated in the teaching by Clement of Alexandria (150-215).

As I explain in my introduction to the Chapter on Origen in ‘Journey to the Heart’: “Origen was a native Alexandrian, highly educated in Greek, Jewish and Christian wisdom. At the young age of 17, Bishop Demetrius of Alexandria appointed him Head of the Catechetical School as successor to Clement.

Early Christian Fathers stressed that we could not know God with our rational mind. No image, concept, or name could ever do justice. In fact, they saw it as blasphemy to attach a name to God, because that would limit the limitlessness or name the unnameable.

The three vows that are taken by Benedictine monks and nuns and Benedictine Oblates, who are committing themselves to live their lives according to the ‘Rule of St Benedict’, are ‘Obedience, Conversion and Stability’.

Closely linked to the Benedictine vow of ‘Conversion’ is the vow of ‘Stability’. Benedict was very aware that the continual conversion, the constant turning to the Divine in prayer and in life required on the spiritual path, was a difficult and often discouraging process.